Cineswami gives us a lowdown on what’s happening at this year’s MAMI Film Festival

Her marriage may be on the rocks and her Bollywood career in the doldrums after Ek Thi Daayan where she unwittingly played herself, but Konkona Sen Sharma is definitely keeping busy. She has a Bengali film called Shesher Kobita, based on a Rabindranath Tagore story, but that’s opposite Rahul Bose, not much different from playing a witch. Meanwhile, she’s been also approached to play a prostitute in Ankush Bhatt’s Kamathipurabut she’s apparently uncomfortable doing the role. Surely it’s a step up from playing a witch and a whole flight up from being paired with Rahul?

Anyhow, the 15th Mumbai Film Festival has announced an illustrious list of jurors and Ms Sen Sharma is amongst them. Heading the International Competition jury as the president will be director Bruce Beresford, whose 1989 film Driving Miss Daisy won the Oscar for the Best Film. He was also nominated for Best Director in 1984 for Tender Mercies. Rubbing shoulders with him and Konkona will be legendary French screen siren Nathalie Baye, star of Une Liaison Pornographique. Rounding up the jury is Japanese critic-turned-director Masato Harada (Return).

The India Gold 2013 Competition section jury boasts of Oscar-winning Iranian director Asghar Farhadi (A Separation) heading the Jury panel as President. Joining him on the jury is Siddiq Barmak (Osama). Journeyman director of mediocre British television programmes Waris Hussein gets a free trip to Mumbai to be on the jury but his unfortunate selection is mode than made up by the presence of Jill Bilcock, editor of Moulin Rouge and of Paani – if that long gestating and jinxed project by the ageing Shekhar Kapur ever gets off the ground. Roger Garcia, the executive director of the prestigious Hong Kong International Film Festival is also on the jury.

The Mumbai festival runs from October 17-24 and will be held at Metro Cinema and Liberty Cinemas as the main festival venues and Cinemax, Andheri (West) as the satellite venue. May we suggest a Vashi centric festival from next year with South Mumbai and Andheri as satellite venues? Much more convenient for all concerned, especially Pune-kars – and in return, we can hold the Pune Film Festival in Elephanta. Righto, Cineswami is off to Hyderabad, Sindh, for the first Telangana/Seemandhra film festival. And it is time for my medication. See you on the other side.

This actor, screenwriter, director, social activist and rugby union player completes 45 years today

Rahul Bose, who was born on July 27, 1967 to Rupen and Kumud Bose, celebrates his birthday today on the first day of London Olympics 2012. Are you curious to know Bose’s advice to the Olympic participants?

Here’s what he had to say, “It’s too late to say ‘practice’. For an international athlete, these last days are to focus and relax. I have been an international sportsperson so I would say just one thing – the environment is new, weather is weird, so players should go there and get used to all that, Olympic village, the food.”

Apart from concentrating on sports, the actor is now busy shooting for Suman Mukherjee’s Shesher Kobita in Shillong and will also be seen in Kamal Haasan’s Vishwaroopam. His other important release is Deepa Mehta’s Midnight’s Children based on Salman Rushdie’s book. The actor’s other projects include Laptopand Ami Charulata.

But while Bose is slowly inching towards mainstream cinema as seen in the recent years, the typical Bollywood masala movie didn’t rule his platter during the initial stages of his career. Rahul debuted with the Dev Benegal’s Hinglish movie, English, August (1994) where he played the role of Agastya Sen. Post that he was applauded for his performance in Bombay Boys (1998), Split Wide Open (1999), Thakshak (1999), Everybody Says I’m Fine! (2001), Mr. and Mrs. Iyer (2002), Chameli (2003), Jhankaar Beats (2003). He starred in hit film Pyaar ke Side Effects (2006) with Mallika Sherawat, and was appreciated in 15 Park Avenue (2005), Kalpurush (2005), Anuranan (2006), Chain Kulii Ki Main Kulii (2007), Before the Rains (2007), Shaurya (2008), Tahaan (2008), Dil Kabaddi (2008) and The Japanese Wife (2010) and I AM (2010), among others. He was also seen in India’s first English TV series A Mouthful of Sky (1995).

But our favourite Hinglish actor still remains single. Wanna wish for a lady in your life this birthday, Rahul? Wink, wink.